


I Wanna Hold Your Hand

by markwardos



Category: The Social Network (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Childhood Friends, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, M/M, Markwardo - Freeform, Softness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-11
Updated: 2019-05-11
Packaged: 2020-03-01 06:07:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18794503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/markwardos/pseuds/markwardos
Summary: Mark and Eduardo meet in elementary school and become best friends but they're always been a bit closer than normal best friends. Eduardo's always loved Mark, and Mark, well Mark's Mark and he takes a while to figure out how he feels and what he wants.





	I Wanna Hold Your Hand

**Author's Note:**

> Mostly fluff and such, there's only a bit of smut so you can scroll through that if you don't like it or if them both being in high school bothers you.

Mark remembers the first time he met Eduardo, at one of those silly get to know your fellow classmates orientation things in elementary school.

 

Mark was short, skinny, with curly hair everyone liked to tug on and make fun of. But after he turned his shark-like eyes with their cold blue coloring on them they’d backed off.

 

But now there was a new kid, he wasn’t short, in fact, he was tall and wiry, he looked like he was all bones and sharp angles, could probably hurt the boys picking on him with the sharp end of his elbow. But he wasn’t a fighter and the fact that he had large brown cartoon eyes didn’t help.

 

He didn’t look menacing at all, especially now that he was crying after the boys had knocked him down and were calling him giraffe. He indeed resembled a giraffe with his long limbs and neck and the deep eyes with fluttering lashes, but that wasn’t a bad thing, Mark thought.

 

Though the boys certainly made it sound like that.

 

He saw the young boys lip begin to tremble as he cried, and Mark picked up one of the balls that was nearby chucking it at one of the guy's heads.

 

They quickly turned towards him and Mark stood up as tall as the shortest boy in their class could, and tilted his chin up, eyes narrowing. They walked up and shoved him down before walking off.

 

Mark quickly got up and turned his eyes back to the giraffe boy who was still on the ground sniffling and staring at him. Mark didn’t like his big cartoon eyes looking at him, he thought. But he went over and tugged him to his feet. He went to let go of the tall boy's hand, but the other had his curled tightly around his.

 

Mark gave a slight tug to take his hand away, but that only pulled the boy closer to him.

 

Mark huffed and walked, apparently dragging the male with him who was intently holding onto his hand.

 

He stayed that way, sniffling still, and just holding Mark’s hand as he walked around before Mark sat in a corner away from the other kids. He liked being alone, except now he wasn’t. But Mark didn’t say anything, and neither did the other kid, apart from staring at him with those wide eyes, but that could easily be ignored. Sort of.

 

Eventually, Mark got up walking, the boy still clutching to his hand. Mark huffed and said, “I gotta go to the bathroom,” tugging his hand from the others. The boy looked at him sadly, but nodded and stuck to the wall.

 

Mark went inside when he came out the boy was still stuck to the wall. Mark walked away, and the male stayed put. Mark couldn’t help but watch the other, watch as he went off in some other direction keeping to himself. He had sad eyes, sadder than when they had been when he had been holding Mark’s hand.

 

Mark huffed, the boy had evil hypnotic cartoon eyes apparently. Mark walked over and took the others hand in his dragging him along, around the area as he moved about.

 

The boy looked happier now, though the staring only got worse.

Once they were sat down in a corner, the boys hand still in his, the other sniffled a bit before saying, “I’m Eduardo.” Mark simply grunted, he hadn’t asked, and he wasn’t going to offer his name up to giraffe boy. But the male kept staring, so eventually, Mark shifted and simply said, “Mark.”

 

Giraffe boy smiled and if Mark had thought the sad eyes were bad with their ability to bend him to their will, the smile was worse, it was like sunshine, which Mark hated, but this type wasn’t so bad it was pretty.

 

Blinding but not in the way that made you squint, warm but not in the way that made you feel gross with sweat, and he could feel it radiate through him, but not in a painful way like with a sunburn.

 

After that, the school year seemed set, Eduardo followed him everywhere. Most of the time his hand clutched in Mark’s. People made comments, most shut up when Mark turned his eyes on them. But some kept up.

 

“Ooo...Giraffe boy has a boyfriend,” they teased.

 

Eduardo’s cheeks would flush and damn if that wasn’t somewhat endearing too.

 

Mark continued to chew on his french fry unblinking as Eduardo stirred next to him.

 

One of the boys came up though, and pulled Eduardo’s hair back making him yelp and fall back off the bench of the cafeteria table. Eduardo whimpered, and Mark shot daggers at the males, but they kept tugging on his hair.

 

Eduardo’s hair was kind of ridiculous, even when it was messy it looked oddly tamed, it wasn’t the sad mess of curls Mark despised on his own head. And they weren’t a mix of a bunch of colors that annoyed Mark with his own hair.

 

Eduardo’s hair was deep chocolate brown and soft from the few times, Mark had felt it brush against him.

 

Mark stood up quickly and barrelled towards one of the boys beating his tiny fists against him. They quickly kicked him off through, hitting him back, his size not working in his favor yet again.

 

The fight got Mark sent first to the nurse, then the dean, then the office to call his mother and be lectured by her about how violence wasn’t the right option. But as if

 

Mark was going to waste his few words on them. Even Eduardo, who apparently was his best friend, though Mark would never say that, only got a rare few.

 

Eduardo babbled though, babbled even though Mark didn’t reply and Mark to his own annoyance remembered every nonsense word of it.

 

Mark went back to class and had to endure Eduardo staring at him all day. Mark scowled at the pain in his cut bottom lip.

 

When recess came Eduardo rushed over to him, but instead of grabbing his hand he worried over Mark’s lip reaching out and touching it. Mark hissed at the sting, and Eduardo’s eyes looked apologetic.

 

It was the laughter of the other boys that tore his thoughts away though, Eduardo was going to get them into more trouble, and it didn’t help that Eduardo again reached out to tend to his still bleeding lip.

 

Mark backed away like he’d been burned and hissed, “Knock it off Giraffe boy.”

 

Eduardo’s eyes widened and he looked hurt and quickly moved away, head drooping and Mark felt like a weight was on his chest the rest of the day.

 

Eduardo didn’t hold his hand the next day when they were in line or even stand next to him.

 

‘Good’, Mark thought at first, he was getting over his little clinging to him phase.

 

But it didn’t feel good, cause Eduardo looked sad and Mark truthfully kind of missed Eduardo holding his hand.

 

He huffed when they were given free time to draw whatever they liked in art. Mark hated art, Eduardo loved it, as he was good at it. Mark just didn’t care for it. But Mark hated himself more for the cheesiness of his next move.

 

He drew a giraffe and colored it in. One of the spots on the giraffe was a large heart on its chest. The giraffe had big brown eyes and long eyelashes, and the mane on the giraffe was a chocolate brown rather than the lighter sienna color giraffes normally had.

 

To make things worse the teacher came by and praised him and told him she’d be putting it in the art show.

 

But before handing it in Mark wrote a little note on a scrap piece of paper:

‘Giraffes are considered one of the most beautiful creatures in the world. They also have one of the biggest hearts. Julius Caesar was the one to name them when he got one as a gift. He then fed it to some lions, he was an idiot cause giraffes are some of the most beautiful creatures in the world.'

 

He drops the note and the painting in front of Eduardo and walks away.

 

Eduardo looks down at the drawing finger moving over it carefully, his face looks slightly pained at first like perhaps the drawing might be another insult, but then his eyes read the note and Mark sees Eduardo smile all bright and happy. Tears also come to his eyes, but they don’t look sad.

 

Eduardo seems to reluctantly hand the drawing in for Mark sans the note which Eduardo seems to very carefully tuck into his notebook. After that, Eduardo’s back at his side, and he smiles and babbles and holds Mark’s hand tightly and Mark doesn’t mind at all.

 

And then the art show comes, and Eduardo goes too cause he has some art there as well. And sadly, the teacher has informed Mark’s parents who insist on seeing the drawing.

 

Eduardo comes alone, no parents and looks sad, and he doesn’t approach Mark with his family, as if he’s not allowed. And if Eduardo had parents with him Mark would prefer that, not having the spectacle of his parents doting twice as much that Mark not only drew something but that he has a friend.

 

And God forbid they ever found out or anyone else ever found out about the note.

 

But Eduardo looks sad and lonely, so as they walk to view more work, and eventually Eduardo’s, which Eduardo is standing by, eyes not quite looking at Mark, he reaches out and grabs ahold of Eduardo’s hand.

 

It’s not until they’ve moved on to the next piece of artwork, that his parents notice that Mark is dragging Eduardo along behind him. Eduardo’s wide-eyed and his hand twitches nervously when Mark’s parents look at him, and Mark despite his own embarrassment tightens his hand around Eduardo’s protectively.

 

It’s not too bad, his sister Randi giggles, but his mother shushes her. Furthermore, his mother asks Eduardo to come over sometime for dinner or a sleepover.

 

In the car on the way home, Randi laughs and says, “He’s cute.”

 

Something stirs in Mark’s stomach and he feels too angry to talk to her for the rest of the night for some reason.

 

Eventually, Eduardo does come over for dinner and sleepover. He looks stunned by his family. And Mark blushes at his parents asking Eduardo questions. Mark doesn’t do that. He knows the answers though, mostly cause Eduardo babbles and he listens.

 

Mark takes Eduardo up to his room and says, “It’s not much.”

 

There’s a small twin bed and a desk, and not much else cause Mark didn’t throw a fit to decorate like his sister did.

 

They sit, Eduardo talks some more, Mark says a few things, and they play some board games.

 

And when it’s time to go to bed they share Mark’s twin bed, Eduardo still holds his hand and the beds not big enough to do that with both of them laying on their back, so Mark ends up oddly pressed up against Eduardo’s back. Odd cause Eduardo’s so much taller, and Mark’s body doesn’t quite match up.

 

But his arm is draped over Eduardo’s waist so Eduardo can hold his hand as he sleeps.

 

Eduardo always talks about how he can never fall asleep, but that seems to be a lie cause he falls to sleep right away, soft shallow breaths coming from him in no time.

 

Mark wakes up in the morning, with his arm tightly wound around Eduardo, the boy as close as can be, his hand tightly grasped, with his face buried into Eduardo’s neck. And it feels comfortable, so he stays there and maybe his leg tangles with Eduardo’s too.

 

This seems to welcome another thing, cause Eduardo seems to come over a lot more now. Sometimes uninvited, in the middle of the night.

 

The first time it happens Mark nearly has a heart attack at the tap on his window and

 

Eduardo outside. He scaled the roof and Mark hushedly says, “What...what are you doing?”

 

But he pauses cause he can see the tear streaks down Eduardo’s cheeks. And that’s how he finds out that the boys at school aren’t the only people who make Eduardo have sad eyes, but his parents do too. With their ignorance towards him.

 

And now Mark understands a bit more, why Eduardo babbles, why Eduardo clings, he needs attention. And Mark seems like the worst person to give it to him, and Mark thinks for a moment that maybe Eduardo likes him, because he’s twisted and is trying for attention from someone who won’t give it, just like his parents. And Mark feels bad.

 

So when Eduardo talks he replies a bit more. And when his parents ask Eduardo questions, Mark will answer some for him just to prove that while he may not respond he’s paying attention. And he doesn’t like it, but he cares about Eduardo. And it doesn’t help that Eduardo now looks at him even more and that the looks are even fonder.

 

At the end of the year, Mark gets his drawing back and he hands it to Eduardo right away to keep.

 

And Mark thinks maybe they’d have grown apart over the summer, or at least not seen each other till school started again if it weren’t for Eduardo’s habit of climbing onto his roof, and sneaking into his room, and sharing his bed. And Mark has become used to it and he kinda likes it cause Eduardo’s warm and he sleeps better when Eduardo’s there.

 

The jokes continue about them being boyfriends because Eduardo still holds his hand.

 

He does it less now, more comfortable with getting attention without the constant tie.

 

And sometimes Mark misses Eduardo doing it constantly. But they have more friends now, Chris, Dustin, Amy, and Christy. And they’re still picked on but it’s fine.

 

They’re in middle school when something first starts to become more obvious.

 

Mark has a math class with a girl named Erica, she’s smart and pretty. Mark notices she’s pretty, and she talks to him and asks him questions that aren’t stupid. She has a great jawline and curled lips and bright blue eyes, and yeah, Mark notices.

 

One day, she sits with him and his group at lunch. She knows Christy and Amy who like her, and Chris gets along with her fine. And Dustin can’t stop staring, he’s girl crazy, and he stares at Amy and Christy too, but he stares at them less, cause they’ve been around forever.

 

Eduardo doesn’t seem to like her though, and when she talks to Mark he stiffens and glares. Which is odd, because Mark’s never seen him glare really, even when the guys are mean to him, he just looks sad and takes it.

 

The school dance comes up in conversation, and Erica asks who they’re going with.

 

Mark assumed they’d just all go as a group, but Amy says she has a date, as does Christy, and Chris is secretly going with a guy in his science class, because neither of them is out yet, and Dustin’s maybe thinking about asking the girl in his history class he always talks about.

 

At this Erica smiles and asks Mark if he wants to go with her. Chris, Amy, and Christy all go still as does Eduardo, but Chris, Amy, and Christy’s eyes seem to go between Mark then  Eduardo, which Mark doesn’t understand.

 

And Dustin looks about ready to fall out of his seat cause Mark just got asked out by a girl.

 

Mark shrugs and says, “Sure.” She smiles and walks away.

 

Eduardo huffs and gets up and retreats making Mark wonder what’s wrong, as Dustin shakes him and squeals and the other three stare at him.

 

“What?” Mark asks them.

 

Christy gives a huff and slams her tray down before getting up, “You’re an idiot,” she says before storming off.

 

“What?” Mark says looking at Amy who simply gets up shaking her head and retreats as well.

 

Mark then looks to Chris who stares at him disappointed before leaving too and Mark is confused.

Chris, Amy, Christy, and Eduardo don’t talk to him all day. Eduardo has sad eyes, and Chris, Amy, and Christy either glare or look at him like he’s the dumbest person on the planet, and maybe he is cause Mark still doesn’t understand.

 

Mark then thinks maybe it’s cause they’ll all have dates now and Eduardo won’t. Which is silly cause if Mark can get a date then Eduardo definitely can. And he says as much to Christy when they’re in history.

 

She looks at him like a parasite and changes seats, but not before she says, “You’re an idiot and a dick.”

 

Their treatment doesn’t help, cause since none of the four will talk to him and Mark gets annoyed easily with Dustin, which just means he ends up hanging out with Erica even more often.

 

“You’re such a dick,” Amy says, which is uncommon cause she’s the more gentle one, while with Christy it’s somewhat expected.

 

“Seriously, what is your guy's problem?” He asks.

 

He gets no answer from her.

 

Chris seems the least mad, simply in his normal ‘I’m so disappointed in you mood’ which is somewhat worse, but he was Mark’s friend before he was Eduardo’s, so Mark asks him.

 

Chris sighs heavily and says, “I don’t know how you don’t see it.”

 

“See what?” Mark asks.

 

“Nothing,” Chris says.

 

“What?” Mark says.

 

“It was just a dick move for you to say yes to Erica when you and Eduardo are, you two.”

 

“That...that makes no sense, what’s you two mean?” He pauses and then says, “It’s not like we’re actually together, it’s just what those dick heads say.”

 

“But you’ve never refuted it,” Chris says.

 

“I don’t like to give those types of people the time of day. They’re not worth the effort.”

 

“Well I don’t know if you know this, but normal friends don’t cuddle and hold hands all the time,” Chris says.

 

“We don’t hold hands all the time,” Mark refutes.

 

“You guys used to when I first got here. And even now you still do it often,” Chris says.

 

“So?”

 

“So, normal friends don’t do that stuff.”

 

“Well he’s my best friend,” Mark explains.

 

“Dustin’s my best friend and we don’t do that,” Chris replies.

 

“That’s cause Dustin’s an idiot.”

 

“Maybe so, but Christy and Amy don’t do that, and they’re girls, holding hands and cuddling is almost somewhat natural.”

 

Mark frowns and says, “It’s not like that.”

 

Chris sighs and says, “Whatever, why do you do it then?”

 

“Cause it makes him happy, he got all sad when I wouldn’t,” Mark says.

 

“You don’t care about how other people feel Mark, why is Eduardo any different?” Chris says.

 

Mark doesn’t know, but Eduardo just is. Eduardo’s always been Eduardo, and Mark’s always been Mark, and it’s natural and right.

 

Mark doesn’t know how he feels or what Eduardo is, or how Eduardo feels or if he thinks what Chris thinks what that means. But Mark tells Erica he can’t go with her, as he promised Eduardo before she had asked him.

 

She’s understanding, and kisses his cheek and says it’s sweet he cares so much about his friend.

 

Girls are weird he decides.

 

And it’s a lie, cause he never promised, but maybe he had and the promise like so much of their relationship simply wasn’t verbal.

 

Eduardo is across the room watching, the girls are glaring daggers and Eduardo looks ready to cry.

 

Mark finds out from Chris that Eduardo’s not even intending to go now anymore. So Mark goes to Eduardo’s house the afternoon of the dance and knocks on the door.

 

Eduardo answers still in his pajamas cause it’s a Saturday and he looks like he’s been crying.

 

“Wha...what do you want Mark?” Eduardo asks lip trembling.

 

Mark feels all sorts of warped about why and what this means about his next move. But he pulls out a flower boutonniere like the one on his crappy suit that he got for his bar mitzvah.

 

“I’m here to take you to the dance, duh,” Mark answers.

 

Eduardo looks down at the flower and says, “You’re going with Erica.”

 

“Well, I told her the other day I was going with you,” Mark replies.

 

Eduardo looks down at his feet and says, “She kissed your cheek.”

 

“Girls do that apparently, they’re weird, “ Mark says.

 

“Yeah,” Eduardo mutters still shifting in the doorway, “you don’t have to.”

 

“I know, but...I want to,” Mark says, and it’s not quite a lie.

 

Eduardo looks up at him searchingly before nodding still slightly unsure, “I need to get ready.”

 

Mark nods and he waits and when Eduardo comes down he’s beautiful and makes Mark’s stomach hurt, and Mark writes it off as envy that doesn’t look like that. He then pins the boutonniere to Eduardo’s suit.

 

Eduardo smiles a bit and he holds Mark’s hand the entire time they’re in the backseat of his mom's car as she drives them.

 

When they’re there they sip punch, and Mark sees Eduardo looking at the couples dancing. Mark hates dancing, even with the group he doesn’t do anything. But he sighs and tugs Eduardo out and he holds him close, even though people stare, he dances with him, even though Mark is still shorter and leading him seems odd. But Eduardo wide-eyed at first eventually leans down and rests his head on Mark’s shoulder, and somehow it just seems right.

 

At the end of the night, his mom drives Eduardo home and Mark walks Eduardo to the door and says goodnight, but Eduardo quickly leans in and steals a kiss for his lips, barely there before rushing inside.

 

And Mark blinks, and he can hear Chris lecturing him in the future that normal friends don’t do that. But he and Eduardo are friends, best friends, the best best friends and they do that cause Eduardo wants them to and Mark will do anything for Eduardo.

Anything, so he doesn’t look sad, anything so he’ll smile, and the truth is being kissed by Eduardo really isn’t bad.

The next day at school, Erica, having seen them dance hits his arm and smiles, “Why didn’t you just tell me you two were together?”

Mark tells her what he fears he’ll be judged for by his group of friends, he tells her he doesn’t know how they’re or how he feels, but he doesn’t dislike dancing, kissing, or holding Eduardo’s hand. She nods and smiles and Mark says, “And I still like girls.”

“Well it’s not an either-or situation Mark, you can like both,” Erica says.

Mark shrugs still unsure.

Eventually, he talks to Eduardo, it just sort of happens, no one brings it up really, and nothing happens that leads to it, they just somehow end up talking about it.

Mark says he doesn’t know how he feels and Eduardo says that’s okay. Mark says he still maybe wants to kiss Eduardo from time to time and hold his hand. Eduardo says that’s okay too. Mark says he needs to figure things out and maybe try kissing other people and doing the stuff he does with Eduardo with them. Eduardo gives him a soft smile and holds his hand and says that’s okay as well.

And Mark feels comfortable cause as much as Eduardo needs attention, he doesn’t at the sake of Mark not getting to figure things out, being uncomfortable, or unhappy. And this doesn’t mean that Mark’s not going to give Eduardo attention or stop holding his hand and sometimes kissing him. He likes the kisses, they’re always short and sweet and innocent. They’re twelve after all.

Eduardo smiles and says in a teasing tone, “You don’t need to do anything Mark just because you think I’m cute when I smile.”

And Mark doesn’t deny that Eduardo is indeed cute when he smiles, cause he is, and when Mark doesn’t deny it Eduardo smiles widely leans forward and kisses Mark softly, smiling against his lips.

When they’re thirteen Mark learns to code, and becomes addicted to it, and Eduardo will sit next to him when he does and lean into his side while he draws, reads a book about the weather, or studies, getting his attention that way.

And on occasion he’ll force Mark’s computer away, getting a small yelp for Mark in protest before spreading across his lap. Mark will blink down at him before stroking the soft chocolate tuft of hair on Eduardo’s head or tracing his nose with his finger and sometimes Mark leans down and kisses him.

When they’re fourteen, a girl takes interest in Mark and Mark goes on a date with her, their friends glare at him, but Eduardo tells Mark it’s okay. On the date, he kisses her, and it’s nice, he’s not sure if it’s as nice as kissing Eduardo though, maybe not. But maybe he wants it to be as nice, cause having a stronger tie is somewhat discomforting.

Things continue on that way, Mark goes on dates, still kisses Eduardo, and he kisses his dates, but those kisses are often less tame, he makes out with one of them, with Eduardo it’s always nice and sweet.

After a while, Eduardo goes on a few dates, and Mark hates them all, and it’s worse cause Eduardo falls apart at any sort of attention, and they’re giving it to him. Mark holds tighter to Eduardo when he sleeps in his bed.

Things come to a head when they go to some Halloween party, now fifteen. All their friend group wants to go, and so does Mark’s girlfriend, Presley. He hates her name cause it’s hard to associate it with anything but Elvis, but she’s pretty, smart, and she has soft skin, and she gave him a blow job once, and let him go down on her which he liked.

She's not the first girl he's done that sort of stuff with though.

The first was Alice, she was his lab partner for a project. When they worked in his room on the project, and they sat on his bed. She was one of the popular girls and didn't give much help with the project.

She mostly stared at him, it wasn't the odd sort of stare that Eduardo had always given, something that resembled admiration and total wonderment, the look that made his cheeks heat up from the soft fluttering feeling in his stomach. Alice's stare was poignant and hard watching him intently and made him shift uncomfortably.

Eventually, she was leaning over and playing with his curls. Then suddenly she had him pinned and they were making out. She had eventually pulled his jeans around his ankles and got to her knees and began rubbing the outside of his boxers. She took him out and he felt scared for a moment, cause her eyes widened before she said: “Wow you're big.”

Mark breathed unevenly, and Mark’s not the type of guy to go whipping it out in the locker room or measuring up against other guys, but he's noticed he's a bit bigger, and other guys have too, cause sometimes they stare slightly stunned or bothered. Mark simply figures the universe had to give him something.

And Mark knows he's not exactly what most would consider hot or anything. So he has spent many nights researching how he might use what he's been given to be good in bed cause he's gotta have something, considering he’s not the normal kind of attractive or kind and considerate.

So after she goes down on him, he goes down on her and she screams almost the entire time.

After that, getting girls comes easy because he gains a reputation at school for being great in bed. His size is whispered about, as well as the capabilities of his tongue and hands. So at this point, there have been quite a few girls before Presley.

He's never gone all the way with them though.

Once at the lunch table Dustin mentioned it, asking if he had gone all the way. Eduardo had stared wide-eyed, and his bottom lip had trembled though he tried to hide it. And Mark doesn’t think he can do it when he still has Eduardo.

So he decides he won’t go all the way with anyone until he’s either kissing only the girl and not Eduardo. Or kissing no one but Eduardo.

At the party, by accident it seems, Mark and Eduardo’s costumes go together, demon and angel. Presley’s a sexy witch, but Mark couldn’t care less because he can’t tear his eyes away from Eduardo’s revealing white outfit. The white is kind of sheer and the fabrics flowy and he’s got glitter all over him. It should be everything someone like Mark, who was forced into a costume by Dustin, should hate. But he doesn’t, not in the slightest

Mark watches him with eyes outlined with dark eyeliner that Christy wrestled him into, poking him in the eye at least three times on purpose and five overall cause he kept trying to move away, as Eduardo flits around the room from guy to guy. Just looking for that attention he craves so much, before finding one who kisses on his neck.

Mark watches them walk outside and Mark follows and watches as he gets into the guy's car. Mark’s stomach feels hard and the wind feels knocked out of him when he hears the first moan from Eduardo’s mouth.

Mark marches over anger fuming and rips open the door glaring. Eduardo’s on his back outfit pushed up slightly, the guy between his legs.

“What the fuck? Get out of here,” the guy screams.

Mark glares harder, ignoring Eduardo’s wide eyes boring into the side of his head, “No you get out.”

“This is my fucking car,” he swears.

Mark shoves the guy over and drags Eduardo out of the car, the guys still cursing at him, Mark doesn’t care, he simply drags Eduardo with him who stumbles behind him, “Mark what...what was,” he begins to stutter.

Mark doesn’t answer he marches them over to Sean Parker’s car. He’s a senior and he drove them tonight cause he’s Mark’s friend sort of and has a crush on Amy, and he has a license. No one in their group does, and won’t until Chris turns sixteen at the end of November.

He shoves Eduardo into the backseat climbing in with him before moving on top of Eduardo whose staring at him wide-eyed. Quickly, he leans down and kisses him harder than he’s ever kissed Eduardo, not the sweet gentle kisses that are standard for them.

Eduardo moans into his mouth and wraps his arms around his neck and Mark continues to kiss him, before his lips move down to Eduardo’s neck sucking marks there, kissing each one he leaves.

He works his way down and unbuttons the white shirt that’s apart of Eduardo’s costume, and sucks on Eduardo’s nipples, nipping at them every now and then, which makes Eduardo let out a loud whine, that nearly makes Mark cum in his pants.

Eventually, Mark fingers Eduardo open slow at first and hearing Eduardo gasp and whimper out his name as he digs his nails into the leather of the back seat. But eventually, Mark’s using all his tricks, till Eduardo’s a mess underneath his fingers, and cums not once but twice. And Eduardo’s costume is ruined, but he doesn’t seem to care.

He’s quick to flip them around and sucks Mark off, licking and sucking in long luscious pulls that drive Mark crazy. And even worse or better, he supposes, Eduardo keeps making all these noises around him like Mark’s dick is the best thing he’s ever had in his mouth. And Mark cums way quicker than he’d like, but Eduardo’s mouth is perfect and his eyes are big, and he holds his hand throughout. And Mark thinks of that warm feeling Eduardo always gives him and he lets go easily and uninhibited pleading out Eduardo’s name.

Eduardo lays on his chest after clinging to him, and Mark strokes Eduardo’s hair softly and kisses his forehead.

Presley somehow doesn’t notice and neither do their friends that night, but Mark assumes Eduardo talks cause Chris descends on him on Monday morning.

“He’s not going to wait forever you know,” Chris says to him, “and you’re not going to be able to keep him from one day ending up with another guy.”

The thought makes Mark feels sick and at the end of the day, he dumps Presley. There’s no fuss and he doesn’t say anything to anyone, and Mark is so uncaring about most of the people he dates that no one comments that she’s not around the next day.

On Wednesday, Mark tells Eduardo they’re going to dinner, Mark doesn’t actually say the word date but Mark thinks it’s implied cause Mark doesn’t exactly ask Eduardo like that.

But to get the point across, Mark tries a little harder. He forgoes a hoodie and wears a button up shirt and nice jeans. He takes Eduardo to a fancier restaurant than the two would normally go to, they’re always going to some diner and Eduardo always orders the same staple, a glass of strawberry milk which Mark thinks is disgusting but it’s just about all Eduardo seems to drink half the time.

So Mark sneaks in strawberry milk for Eduardo, handing it over for him to sip which makes Eduardo who’d been slightly frowning at the drink menu for the past three minutes light up like a firework.

They talk like they always do. But Mark pays the bill for both of them which Eduardo protests but Mark ignores him. Mark asked him on the date so he's paying.

Mark holds his hand when they walk our and kisses Eduardo on the sidewalk. The kiss causes Eduardo to give a slight sound of surprise, cause it's not short and sweet like usual, but it's also not raunchy like in the car. It's just deep and slow, and Mark gently works Eduardo's mouth open with his tongue holding him close. And he gets lost as Eduardo’s fingers bury into his curls and his tongue moves against his, and Mark doesn’t even care that he can taste the strawberry milk on his lips.

Mark takes Eduardo on more dates after that, but Eduardo mostly just looks confused and if he doesn’t understand, Mark’s too proud to explain it to him.

“What's going on with you and Eduardo? You're being more dotting than usual, it's rude to string him along like that,” Christy says.

“Chris said he wasn't gonna wait forever,” Mark replies.

Christy stares and says, “Wait are you? Are you saying you’re dating him? Only him?”

Mark blinks at her and she huffs, “Did you actually tell him you're dating?”

Mark blinks again and she shakes her head and says, “You're an idiot.”

Christy apparently doesn't clue Eduardo in, cause he still just looks confused.

And Mark stares at Eduardo more than usual, cause Eduardo’s pretty with his long lashes and pink lips that are wrapped around the straw of his strawberry milk, and they’re dating, so those lips now belong to him, and so do his lashes which sometimes flutter against Mark’s cheek when they kiss.

Then one day they’re watching a movie with their friends in Dustin’s basement, Eduardo’s laying back against his chest, Mark’s hand moving through his hair when Mark notices that Eduardo’s got one of his hoodie strings in his mouth, and is chewing on it lightly, and it has to be the most endearing thing in the world.

Mark holds him closer and Eduardo looks up at him lips still wrapped around the hoodie string. Slowly Mark reaches out and runs his thumb against Eduardo’s bottom lip, causing the hoodie string to fall out of his mouth before he kisses him. After, he places the hoodie string against Eduardo’s lips offering it back up and Eduardo smiles and chews on it again, and Mark is happy and feels warm all over and kisses Eduardo’s forehead.

Another day, Eduardo’s messing around with his camera, he got into photography a while ago, and Mark has had to fend off pictures, but Eduardo pouts, so Mark lets him snap photographs of him. They’re in the park, Eduardo insisted on fresh air, and Mark’s got his laptop open still glaring at people whose frisbees come too close.

Mark glances up and notices Eduardo’s been snapping away at him.

“Quit it,” Mark grumbles.

“You’re too pretty not to photograph,” Eduardo smiles.

“I’m not pretty,” Mark protests.

“Beautiful,” Eduardo says, “too beautiful not to photograph. And you’re in the sun, it’s a rare photo.”

“Says the actual beauty behind the camera,” Mark comments shortly.

Eduardo blushes slightly and snaps another picture, Mark narrows his eyes and puts his laptop away before jumping at Eduardo.

“Careful camera!” Eduardo shouts as they topple.

Mark knows all about attachment to electronics so he makes sure nothing happens to Eduardo’s camera, if it had, he’d feel more than obligated to buy Eduardo a new and better one anyways.

Mark looks down at Eduardo and steals the camera.

“Hey!” Eduardo protests and says, “Don’t! Don’t delete them!”

 

“I’m not,” Mark says before turning the camera and snapping a picture of Eduardo.

“What’re you doing?” Eduardo asks laughing.

Snap. Snap. Snap.

“Taking pictures,” Mark answers.

Eduardo smiles from beneath him and Mark snaps another picture.

“You’ve got enough of me,” Eduardo says after a while.

“Never enough,” Mark says, but he’s not really talking about the photos.

He leans down and captures Eduardo’s lip kissing him hungrily, still firmly gripping Eduardo’s camera.

When he pulls away, Eduardo’s eyes are dazed and wide, his hair is slightly askew, his lips are red.

And Mark snaps more photos. He then goes in again but this time leaves marks on Eduardo’s neck, he takes photos of that after and Eduardo shifts beneath him.

Mark eventually rolls to lay beside Eduardo and photographs Eduardo looking over at him. He hands Eduardo the camera and Eduardo snaps several photos of him, including a few after Eduardo leaves his own marks on Mark's neck.

Mark smiles easily after and Eduardo snaps a picture of that as well.

Eduardo then stretches his arm up and takes a picture of the two of them. Mark smiles and says, “You can take more of those.”

Eduardo blinks at him and Mark wants to steal the camera again to capture that look.

Eduardo takes several more of them, some of them smiling at the camera, some of them looking at each other, some of Eduardo looking up and thinking Mark is too but Mark is just looking at Eduardo. Some of them kissing, some of them snuggled close, and a few of Mark nuzzled against Eduardo’s neck.

When they get to Eduardo’s house Mark kisses Eduardo on the doorstep and says, “I want a copy of all those pictures.”

Eduardo stares and smiles a bit and nods before going in.

Mark gets the photos and smiles of at them, even the ones of just him, some of him scowling, some of him smiling. But it’s the ones of Eduardo and the ones of them together he feels the happiest about.

He has a cork board with a few of the photos of their group and of him and some of his friends, mostly taken by Eduardo or his mom. There’s one of him with each of his friends, a few already with Eduardo at various ages, a few of the group. He ends up pinning several more to the board, some of just Eduardo, and several of them together.

When Eduardo comes over, he stares at the board which is now more so an ode to simply Eduardo or him and Eduardo and he runs his fingers over it and smiles a bit.

For Christmas, Mark makes a new more refined rendering of the giraffe he once made. Except for this time the spots are all hearts and are filled with pictures of him and Eduardo.

Eduardo cries when he hands it to him and jumps at Mark kissing him deeply. Mark catches him and all his flailing limbs, and kisses him back, wiping his tears away. Eduardo bites his lip the whole night after, not saying anything, but clinging to Mark’s side.

Things are defined during New Years because Eduardo apparently still doesn’t know they’re dating and some guy and Eduardo have been talking under Mark’s watchful eye before the guy moves in to kiss him. Mark stomps over and pushes the guy back and firmly says, “Hands off.”

“Wasn’t aware he was taken,” the guy says eying Mark.

“I’m not,” Eduardo says frowning and looking between them. And Mark’s had enough of it so he ignores the other guy and presses Eduardo against the wall, moving in between Eduardo’s legs, giving him a hard look before saying, “Yes you’re.”

Eduardo stares at him blankly for a moment before saying, “Since when?”

Mark huffs and says, “Remember after Halloween, when we went out to dinner, I dressed up, I paid, brought you strawberry milk, and kissed you in public?”

“Yeah,” Eduardo replies.

Mark stares at him hard for a moment, before Eduardo says, “Oh,” chewing on his lower lip and looking down.

“And....are you...are you taken too?” Eduardo mutters.

“Yeah, I'm taken too,” Mark replies.

“By me?” Eduardo asks nervously his cheeks flushing.

Mark smiles, and presses his forehead against Eduardo's and kisses him gently before whispering, “Yeah by you.”

Eduardo blinks before a smile spreads over his face. "Mark," he says softly.

 

"Yeah?"

 

Eduardo smiles even brighter before he says, "I love you."

 

And it's not like it's the first time Mark's heard it from Eduardo or known it. He's heard Eduardo whisper it against his shoulder for years and years, but he could always write it off as Eduardo loving him the way people love some of their friends and family.

And he's also known in a way that Eduardo loves him, from the way he looks at him. And now he thinks he knows that the reason Eduardo was so quiet after he gave him his gift on Christmas, is because Eduardo wanted to scream the words at him.

But it's the first time it's been said right at him with no caveats, and for a moment Mark's eyes cross, and he's terrified he's going to pass out, but then Eduardo's staring at him nervously and shy and vulnerable and Mark shakes himself out of it as he’s pretty sure passing out or panicking will hurt Eduardo.

Mark’s stomach clenches and he pulls Eduardo’s head to his shoulder, kissing his forehead, and Marks' heart is pounding as he glances around, making sure no one is paying them any attention before he mutters, "I love you too,” into Eduardo's hair.

And he's not saying it just to say it, or cause it'll make Eduardo smile if he does, or because Eduardo is cute when he smiles, or because Eduardo might be sad if he doesn't. He says it because he means it, and Mark thinks it might be impossible to not be in love with someone that looks like a giraffe, loves strawberry milk, and has been holding your hand since the day you’ve met.

But Eduardo doesn't seem to agree, because he lifts his head, and he looks up at Mark like he's about to cry.

 

"You…" he starts, and Mark really thinks he’s going to cry and he doesn’t want him to, so he takes Eduardo’s face in his hands and kisses him and says, “Of course I do, I think I always have, even if you were smarter and had it all figured out before me.”

 

And Eduardo smiles all bright and clings to him, and they’re together now and it’s good, really good.

  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Well you finally got some form of fic out of me. Not the one I've been scanning through and talking about my blog, but one that I had pretty much entirely done in my docs and felt would be easy to work through. It's not the best but oh well.  
> Tumblr: tswiftandtsn


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